The new occupational health and safety (OH&S) standard, ISO 45001, has been approved following an overwhelming final vote of 93% by the ISO member National Standard Bodies (NSBs).
According to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Director - Jose Alcorta - publication is anticipated in March 2018.
ISO 45001 is based on the same High Level Structure as the quality and environmental management system standards, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, which will make the structure and common features familiar to organisations using those standards. ISO 45001 will replace OHSAS 18001, which has been widely adopted alongside a number of other national standards.
The International Accreditation Forum (IAF) has developed the migration requirements to help certified organisations, certification bodies, accreditation bodies and other interested parties to migrate to ISO 45001. There will be a three-year migration period from the date of publication of ISO 45001:2018.
LRQA sees the result as a validation that the standard is fit for purpose for all organisations - irrespective of their size or geographic location - and will help to embed OH&S even further into organisations.
Commenting on the successful approval for publication of ISO 45001, Steve Williams, LRQA System and Governance Manager for Management Systems and Inspection Services and a member of the project committee ISO/PC 283, which was responsible for developing ISO 45001, said, “The publication of ISO 45001 has a special resonance with LRQA as the profits we generate fund the LRQA Foundation, a charity that supports engineering-related research, education and public engagement around everything we do and helps us stand by the purpose that drives us every single day: Working together for a safer world. ISO 45001 will go a long way towards helping to achieve this by helping to protect workers and to improve OH&S performance all over the world.”
With all the major ISO standards being revised, LRQA is at the forefront of communicating the changes. We offer a range of ISO 45001 training courses to support organisations worldwide with their migration to the new standard.